Texas – Copperas Cove AC was apparently transferring animals from its kill list to a rescue called Reliant Upon God Activity Center Animal Shelter in Florence.  After a surprise inspection of the rescue facility by the state in March, the county obtained a warrant and seized 89 cats and 1 dog citing poor conditions, improper housing and sick cats in need of vet care.  The owners have been charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty and a judge determined the animals will not be returned to them.

An 85 year old woman took a wrong turn on a road trip and ended up stranded with her cat in the CO mountains for 5 days.  She had to ration a tiny amount of food for herself and drink melted snow but the cat had plenty of cat food and just basically spent the 5 days in the car catting.  Hikers found and rescued the pair.

A CO mail carrier saw a family carrying their elderly dog up and down their porch stairs and decided to build them a ramp from the materials he had used to make a ramp for his own senior dog, who has since died.  Each other is all we’ve got.

A family in Australia went to great lengths to save a neighbor’s drowning 25 year old horse who ended up in their front yard during a flood.  She collapsed inside their house and they stayed up with her all night, keeping her head above water, inspired after seeing her incredible will to live.  The horse is now back home with her piggy bestie.

Fancy alligator family already living on golf course upgrades to larger pond.

Texas – An off duty Tyler ACO was reportedly walking his dog past his neighbor’s yard where several children were playing.  When the family dog Lulu attempted to greet the ACO, he shot her to death, claiming he feared for his life.  Police are investigating.  (Some readers may recall Tyler as one of the cities which contracted the notorious Klein Animal Shelter to dispose of its community pets.)

Lulu was a beloved family member with no known history of aggression.  Nine year old Jaycie, a member of Lulu’s family, told the local news:

I don’t know why he would kill a dog if he was animal control, because he’s really supposed to save dogs not kill them.

I don’t know either.  But that’s a pretty good question.  Maybe taxpayers should demand an answer.  (Thanks to the reader who sent me this story.)

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In an effort to boost morale at the Interior Department, employees will be allowed to bring their dogs to work as part of a test program on two Fridays in May and September at the department’s DC headquarters. (Thanks Clarice.)

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If you have $3 million, you might like to buy Bela Lugosi’s old home in Hollywoodland where he and his wife lived with their large dogs, including a white German shepherd.  (Thanks Billy.)

While there is some question as to whether dogs in general like to be dressed up, it is certain that at least one dog in WA does not like being dressed up, getting lost and being picked up the police.  (Thanks Lisa.)

A disabled veteran in TX found a job where he could bring his service dog.

Scientists look to the dog nose when improving mechanical bomb detectors.

Fake news story about 42 US states agreeing to BSL duped some people last week.  (It’s #4 on this list if you want to scroll down.)

Note:  Sorry I don’t have more for you today.  I’m sick, been sick, seemingly recovered then got sick again – basically sick of being sick at this point.  I feel like a walking petri dish.  Anyway I’m very behind on emails and hoping to get caught up one of these days.  Don’t breathe.

Texas – A former Bastrop County Animal Shelter employee who says she was fired from her job two months after bringing shelter pet abuse concerns to the county will have her whistleblower protection lawsuit heard in court. The county had tried to get the case dismissed but was unsuccessful.

A dog in Detroit who was left behind after his family was evicted from their home waited for them to return for a month before a local rescue group took him in.

A new report from the World Wildlife Foundation and the Zoological Society of London states the planet’s wildlife population has declined by nearly 60% since 1970 and by 2020, that number will be roughly 66%.

Horse art made from found objects including sticks and scrap metal.

Japan has everything.  Including owl cafes.

Hit:  Guy who dressed up as his dog’s favorite toy for Halloween.  Miss:  Guy who dressed up as his cat.

More Halloween:  President Obama at the White House with a baby Tigger and a lame duck.

While cleaning at the Bedford Co Animal Shelter in VA, employee Bryan T. Skinnell allegedly beat a cat so severely that a vet could not save the animal. Skinnell has since been fired and charged with felony cruelty.  (Thanks Clarice for the link.)

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A young woman who volunteered at the Gwinnett Co pound in Georgia for two months was fired because the powers that be decided her dyed hair, tattoos and piercings did not conform to the county’s grooming policy. After two months. Gee, if only she looked more like Mr. Skinnell, whose appearance was sufficiently acceptable to give him a job, never mind accept him as a volunteer. Because appearance directly correlates to compassion, obviously.  (Thanks Valerie.)

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Case Update:  Appomattox Co in VA finished investigating itself in the killing of shelter dog Sam.  The report released by the county basically says no wrongdoing by the county, other places are worse, and describes the facility’s number as “exemplary”.  The hastily named Animal Welfare Action Group opted to take no action for animal welfare, simply stating that they found details of the report to be inaccurate but they don’t want to make waves.  (Thanks Clarice.)

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Case Update:  Mary Jo Frazier, former head of Boulder City AC in CO charged with felony animal abuse, accepted a plea deal to avoid trial.  Frazier who allegedly killed shelter pets illegally “for fun”, pleaded guilty to two felonies relating to two pets:

“You did willfully, unlawfully, maliciously and feloniously torture and or unjustly maimed, mutilate or kill a male dog names Oscar and or a pit bull puppy named Lotus,” said Judge Susan Johnson, in reading a description of the crime.

Frazier is free on bail and is scheduled for sentencing on January 31, 2017. The judge has ordered her to keep away from animals.  (Thanks Clarice.)

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Dr. Todd Hayden, the interim director of the Montgomery Co pound in Texas, alleged at a public meeting last month that employees were using the shelter as a dog flipping operation:

“In our county, if you lost your dog and you were on your way to work and it was picked up and brought to our shelter, it was probably flipped before you got home,” he said. “It went to a rescue and it was sold. A lot of people made a lot of money.”

[…]

The interim director said he had counted 228 animals sold before the [three day] stray hold was up, including 56 that went the same day they were brought in.

The sheriff’s office is investigating the claim.  (Thanks Jan.)

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The Lake Co pound in FL, run by the sheriff’s office, released some statistics to demonstrate supposed improvement at the facility.  However, more than 900 animals appearing on the report have no outcome listed rendering the stats useless. You are probably wanting an assplanation. Got it:

Lt. John Herrell, spokesman for the sheriff, wrote in an email that “there are so many variables in these calculations, coupled with the fact that the software system is calculating the figures, there is no way I can explain the stats and percentages the program generated.”

There. Is. No. Way. I. Can. Explain.

This is excellent and I’m going to start using it at my job too.  (Thanks Davyd.)

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I’m sorry everything is awful.  Here, have an I Don’t Give a Damn cat:

Jack (photo by Casey Post)

A photo of adorable puppies at the Jackson Co shelter in NC accompanies an article based upon the flawed premise that shelters up north are no kill and that there are strict spay-neuter laws in northern states.  The county recently purchased a cargo van for $23,000 in order to regularly ship dogs up north.

To be clear, there is no state in this country that has publicly available statistics to back up any claim that healthy/treatable animals are not killed in its shelters.  Further, there is no state that has mandatory spay-neuter for all dogs and cats.  AFAIK, shelter animals are killed in all 50 states and driving them hundreds of miles causes displacement killing and perpetuates myths about shelter animals, in addition to a host of other serious issues.  (Thanks Lisa for the link.)

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A terrible op-ed defending the Miami-Dade pound appeared in the Miami Herald last week.  Perhaps the worst bit:

Nearly 100 animals a day come into MDAS. This strains the ability of our community to care for adoptable, salvageable animals by having to keep the community’s old, infirm and injured pets alive, or networking them and using resources that might best be utilized elsewhere.

Gee, so sorry your shelter is expected to keep imperfect (in your eyes) pets alive which compromises (in your opinion) the shelter’s ability to keep “salvageable” (as in, junkyard?) pets alive.  How awful that resources are spent on the elderly and infirm when it would obviously be better to use them for the young and beautiful.  Yeah, that’s what sheltering is all about.

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Dallas seems to be facing up to the fact that “catch and kill” isn’t going to solve its loose dog problem because it does nothing to address poverty – the root cause of the issue.  (Thanks Karen.)

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A dozen shelter dogs in Santa Barbara Co got to go running with members of a local high school cross country team.  What an excellent idea!  (Thanks Claire.)

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The smallest wild cat, the Arabian Sand Cat, was spotted for the first time in 10 years via baited camera traps set up by scientists in Abu Dhabi.  (Thanks Steven.)

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Capybaras are friends with everybody.  (Thanks Billy.)

The Memphis Humane Society is apparently still a mess.  After threatening to kill a dog who looked at a baby, and firing some employees in response to the ensuing public backlash, the new director is attacking and alienating everyone within an internet-mile-radius.  (Read the comments too, if you haven’t exceeded your ew, that person is in charge of an animal shelter? quota for the week.)

Award winning dog photos and because right now, we probably all need it, more beautiful dog photos, these featuring oldens.

Apparently stealing bee colonies is a thing, and it’s best done at night.

Hot job lead, if you know any out of work Hedgehog Officers.

Quite a lot of things I didn’t know, all in a rather short article.

Which would you rather?:

A Wildlife Show at the Alice Springs Desert Park in Australia
or
Winged Terror From Above

The city of Norfolk impounded a dog from his new owner after the dog killed a cat last month. The rescue that had arranged the adoption immediately called the Norfolk Animal Care and Adoption Center to claim ownership of the dog but the city quickly killed him anyway. The city claimed they had researched the dog’s background and found he’d been adopted via out of state groups multiple times but those adoptions didn’t work out. Also a rabies certificate had the dog’s age wrong. So kill. (Thanks Leigh for the link.)

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After the troubled Fitchburg Animal Control in MA was shut down in 2014, the fired managers opened up a dog training business.  Both were charged with felony animal cruelty this month in connection with a client’s dog they allegedly left muzzled for several days, causing injury.  (Thanks Anne.)

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Someone tied a starving dog to a post at the pound in Lubbock, TX. Problem One: The pound has been closed for years since the city built a new facility in a different location. Problem Two: Anyone bringing a pet there after-hours would have no way of knowing the place was abandoned since the signs are still up and there are no signs advising visitors of the new location. Fortunately, a member of the irresponsible public helped the dog and she is now in rescue. In response to social media postings about the incident, the city finally removed the signs at the vacant shelter.

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The GA vet who blamed a dog for burning to death inside a hyperbaric chamber at his clinic is now wanted by police in Cherokee Co for an apparently unrelated incident.  He is considered armed and dangerous.  (Thanks Clarice.)

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Five PA high school football players have been cited for illegally killing wild animals after they posted photos of themselves on social media posing with baseball bats and bloodied animal corpses.  The animals they apparently sought out for the purpose of torturing them to death included frogs, pigeons and possums as well as a snake and a raccoon.  The recent graduates and star athletes got an assist from Coach Enabler:

Jim Roth, the head football coach at Southern Columbia, said, “Some kids that are good kids … made a bad decision.”

He added that “Some of these kids are not even aware of all the laws as far as small animals.”

Well gosh, I wonder what other laws these good kids might not be fully aware of – because we’ll want to give them a pass when they break those too, obviously.

Lynn Co Animal Services in Texas recently announced plans to start killing dogs after 72 hours.  The director killsplained that the public is irresponsible, nobody wants to kill animals, blah cetera.  After the local news ran the story, so many stupid irresponsible public jerks called wanting to adopt, Lynn Co had to refer the unwashed masses to other shelters in the area.  (Thanks Clarice for the link.)

Second Chance Dogs, a rescue that reportedly pulled a lot of dogs from Ashe Co Animal Control in NC, has severed ties with the facility because another rescue beat them to a “very adoptable litter” of puppies last month.  Second Chance was annoyed that AC didn’t turn the other rescue away and hold the pups at the pound, I guess you know, in case Second Chance might want to sell them.  Plus shelters are really swell environments for puppies so.  Second Chance got so much angry feels and decided to punish all the dogs at the Ashe Co pound by refusing to help any ever again.  (Thanks Lisa.)

Some of you have seen this in the Open Thread but I wanted to mention it here too:  A heartbroken owner who filed a lost dog report with Prince George Co Animal
Services in VA says she doesn’t harbor any ill will toward the shelter despite the fact that they forgot to file her report, impounded her dog, failed to find his microchip, then sent him to a rescue group.  The rescue director is jerking the owner around so shamefully that it’s embarrassing to be the same species.  (Thanks Clarice, et al.)

Nat Geo answers readers’ questions about cat behavior.  Note:  Even if you aren’t particularly interested in reading the article, you probably want to look at the super excellent kitten picture at the top of the page.  (Thanks Steven.)

Pilots broke the rules when flying evacuees from the Fort McMurray fire in Canada by accepting every pet who came with their family including dogs, cats, rabbits, hedgehogs, chinchillas and frogs. The pictures of the pets on board the plane are awesome. (Thanks Karen.)

In January, NY state inspectors found that the Islip animal shelter was sending strays out with rescues and adopters without holding them for the mandated 5 day holding period so their owners could reclaim them.  In February, the shelter director was caught on audio tape telling a puppy’s owner that her pet wasn’t at the facility then, after she apparently thought the owner had hung up, telling staff to lie about the puppy as he was being backdoored to a rescue.  The town allowed the director to retire instead of being fired.  She should be in jail.  (Thanks Clarice for the link.)

U Got the Look:  Shelter dogs in Ohio dressed up like Prince.

Officials at a middle school in Louisiana decided hell yes it’s appropriate to put a student’s service dog’s picture in the yearbook with all the other attendees.  (Thanks Claire.)

Pets help people in so many ways – this autistic child seemed to come out of her shell after getting a cat.  The photos accompanying the article are beautiful.

Dear All Police, Use these officers as your role models. Thx.  (Thanks mikken.)

Possible picture to give to your stylist next time you get a haircut.  (Thanks Claire.)

Hullo!  A humpback whale feeding at a marina in Alaska.